I made my first batch of vegan kimchi during Veganuary and it was about to both hit its prime and go off on me at the same time. So I had to eat a bunch of kimchi. The horror!
It took me a while to find a good kimchijeon recipe, for some reason all the ones I found online turned out soggy and weird. But then I remember I have Lucky Peach presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes on my bookshelf and lo and behold, of course the best recipe for kimchi pancakes was in there.
They’re super easy and they’re vegan. I eat my kimchijeon for lunch or dinner, with some rice or on their own. They also make a great snack.
Easy vegan kimchijeon (kimchi pancakes)
This kimchijeon (kimchi pancake) recipe from Lucky Peach's presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes is super quick and easy and can be made with either homemade or store-bought kimchi.
Equipment
- Bowl
- Whisk
- Skillet or frying pan
- Spatula
Ingredients
- 1 c - 150 gr kimchi
- 1/2 c - 125 ml kimchi juice see instructions
- 1/4 c - 35 gr all purpose flour
- 1/4 c - 35 gr rice flour
- 1/2 t - 2 gr salt
- 1 spring onion whites and greens coarsely chopped
- 2 T - 30 ml neutral oil for frying, I use sunflower
Dipping sauce
- 1 T - 15 ml soy sauce
- 1 T - 15 ml rice wine vinegar
- 1 T - 15 ml water
- dash sesame oil
Instructions
- Squeeze 1 c - 150 gr of kimchi over a bowl to release as much liquid as possible. You'll need about 1/2 c - 125 ml cup's worth of liquid. You can add water if you don't have enough juice. Since my kimchi was about to go off I just used additional liquid from the container.
- Once you've squeezed the life out of it, roughly chop the kimchi.
- Now whisk together the kimchi juice, 1/4 c - 35 gr of all purpose and rice flour and 1/2 t - 2 gr of salt.
- Let stand for 5 minutes until thickened before folding in the kimchi and spring onions. Leave for 5 minutes more, so the batter becomes more cohesive.
- Finally, heat 1 T of neutral oil in a decently sized skillet on a medium-high heat. Dump in half the batter and spread around and flatten your pancake with a spatula as soon as it hits the pan. You want to create a thin and even round layer.
- Pan fry until the bottom has gone brown and crisp, about 3-4 minutes. Flip and fry for an additional 2-3 minutes, until the batter has set and the bottom has gone brown and crisp as well.
- Re-grease the pan for a second pancake and repeat.
- Cut into wedges and serve with a simple dipping sauce made with 1 T of soy sauce, rice vinegar and water each and a few dots of sesame oil.
Notes
Fried kimchi pancakes will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days and can be reheated in some neutral oil in a frying pan to get those crispy edges back.
